This reminds me of the time my friend asked me which car he should buy- A second hand Thar for 10 lakhs or a new VW Virtus for 22 Lakhs. I will tell you what I told him. You can only compare cars when they are in the same segment or category with 1-2 lakhs or maximum 3-4 lakhs of price difference between them. The two cars are nowhere near each other, serve entirely different purposes and hence cannot be compared. You've asked a similar question. ADJ and Big 4 are completely different lines of work where you will lead an entirely different life in both from the place you live, the people you interact with to the person you marry and the school you children will attend. You can have a comparison between Big 4 and Tier 1 law firm or ADJ and Litigation (maybe) but cannot have a comparison between Big 4 and ADJ.